Twice Upon A Tale

S2E18

Selfless, Brave and True

"I hate that he thinks I don't like her because of him" Emma snapped, throwing a throw pillow unceremoniously off of the bed. "I don't give a rats ass about him, but he wants this woman around our son Regina! Our son!"

Emma recently come to blows with Neal because of the sudden presence of his Fiancée, Tamara. Regina knew her well enough to know that she didn't care about Neal, this was about Henry and the introduction of his father and soon-to-be stepmother all at once. It could be a lot for a kid to handle, and Emma worried about Henry almost as much as Regina did.

Being realistic, nobody ever worried about Henry as much as Regina did. She knew it was unhealthy, compulsive almost, but she still checked to make sure he was breathing in the middle of the night. She'd been doing it for almost eleven years, and she didn't know if she'd ever stop.

Because she worried so much about Henry, she had been the one in contact with Neal during Henry's visits; she would drop off Henry, hand Neal his backpack, and lay out specific instructions about when he needed to eat dinner and when he needed to come home. She was always polite, answered any questions Neal had about Henry's dietary restrictions or homework due dates, and then kissed her son on the head and left for the few hours he spent with his Dad.

Emma could not be present for this as of late, ever since Tamara's arrival. Case in point would be the most recent time she'd dropped Henry off and had gotten into somewhat of a verbal altercation with Tamara.

"This must've been what I sounded like when I refused to say 'our' son and insisted on 'my' son every chance I got" Regina replied from the ensuite doorway as she brushed her hair.

"This is different" Emma replied, continuing her assault on the throw pillows that littered Regina's bed. She threw another one down with the first, trying to find the edge of the duvet to pull it back so they could go to bed. "I grew him and gave birth to him, you raised him for ten years. What has he done?"

"You?"

Smack.

The sound of a throw pillow (albeit a rather small one) hitting Regina square in the stomach rung out in the room. Emma had launched it across the bed and her expert aim had made sure it made contact with the Queen directly.

"You know, thirty years ago I would've had you killed for that" Regina pointed out with a snicker as she picked up the pillow and weakly threw it back, watching as it landed with a thud by Emma's feet.

"Six months ago you would've had me killed for that" Emma shoots back, glaring at Regina's grin. "But back to the point at hand; we both contributed for reasonable amounts of time. Neal contributes for five disappointing minutes, disappears for eleven years, and now suddenly Henry thinks he's Dad of the year?"

Emma's anger gnawed away at her gut, making her blood boil as she thought of Neal playing house with her son and a woman she didn't know.

"Henry's just excited. The novelty will wear off and soon he'll be avoiding spending Fridays with his Dad just like he avoids spending Fridays with us" Regina points out, knowing that Henry was at that age where he wanted to hang out with his friends more than his Moms. It was a normal part of growing up; most pre-teens thought their parents were uncool.

"You're being surprisingly calm about this whole thing" Emma said, one blonde eyebrow raised in a perfect arch as she tossed the last of the godforsaken pillows onto the floor.

"I'm not worried; he's my son. He's our son, and he's a good boy. He knows we love him" Regina answered nonchalantly, putting her hairbrush away before switching off the bathroom light and making her way towards where Emma stood, still disgruntled, but now surrounded by tiny pillows.